On the tragic day of January 20th, 2020, the NBA legend Kobe Bryant passed away after his helicopter crashed, leaving the world shocked.
Being the great person he was, he left many positive things for us on earth, but the most important for everyone’s everyday life, especially athletes, was probably the Mamba Mentality.
With his way of approaching life and, most importantly, basketball, Kobe truly changed the NBA and the lives of many people who started seeing him as a mentor, a guide, and an inspiration to achieve what seemed impossible to reach. As the five-time NBA champion said: “To sum up what mamba mentality is, it means to be able to constantly try to be the best version of yourself. Mamba mentality is all about focusing on the process and trusting in the hard work when it matters most.”
The roots of his way of approaching work could probably be found early in Kobe’s life, around the age of 10-11. He explained in an interview that, during an entire summer, he didn’t score a single point. After his father comforted him, he started working on himself to get better day after day. That is probably where his Mamba Mentality stems from.
A perfect example of how Bryant shaped many athletes and made them who they are can be perfectly seen in an interview with NBA player Spencer Dinwiddie, published in an article by CBS.
“The lessons of hard work and, as cliché as it may sound, the Mamba Mentality, right, that’s part of the reason I am who I am today,” Dinwiddie said.
“The mentality of consistent work and pushing through boundaries and playing through injury and never giving up, never falling, just continuing to push through — shooting the free throws [after rupturing his] Achilles, all types of things that he did, the game-winners, all that stuff, he was everything to a lot of kids. And I was one of them.”
Describing the Mamba Mentality is difficult, it’s something you feel inside yourself, and it’s what makes you go that extra mile and pushes you to go further when there’s nothing left in the tank. It is that desire to be the best version of yourself, not give up in front of adversities, and push through the struggle when no one believes in you and no one is watching. It’s a different state of mind that, if reached, completely changes the way you see the world and how you tackle the challenges that lay ahead of you. Once you implement the Mamba Mentality, there is no turning back.
In honor of Kobe, the Lakers have announced they will wear the Black Mamba jerseys on 8/2/24 (Thursday). On the same day, a statue representing the NBA legend will be unveiled outside the Crypto.com Arena.